The consultative processes for the upcoming synod is providing the Church a frank snapshot of its relationship with Catholic young adults.

Peter Jesserer Smith

WASHINGTON — For the past several months, dioceses and Catholic organizations across the country consulted youth and young adults on their most pressing concerns and their relationship with the Church, as part of the preparation for the upcoming 2018 Synod on Young People, Faith and Vocational Discernment in Rome.

Gathered in Baltimore for their fall general assembly, members of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops listened as conference president Cardinal Daniel DiNardo of Galveston-Houston delivered a summary report with a sobering appraisal of the Church’s relationship with young people ranging in age from 16 to 29 years old.

“Young people frequently cited economic struggles, poverty, drug and alcohol abuse, isolation, anxiety and societal pressures as the top challenges,” he said. “They also expressed a desire for the Church to accompany them through these concerns.”

Cardinal DiNardo said the report confirmed that young people are disaffiliating at greater rates than historically seen, and youth and young adult ministers are struggling to connect.

According to the Pew Research Center, the number of religiously disaffiliated or “Nones” in the United States has risen rapidly from an estimated 36.6 million people in 2007 to an estimated 55.8 million in 2014. Approximately 35% of millennials (the generation born between 1981 and 1996) are “Nones” and may identify as atheists, agnostics or believe “nothing in particular.”

Cardinal DiNardo also emphasized that youth and young adults desire to be “intentionally invited into leadership roles” and said they are looking for mentorship, spiritual direction and support during periods of transition in life. But young people kept “frequently” repeating they are not receiving this from the Church.

Cardinal DiNardo added that many young people, especially African-American, Native American, and Hispanic and Latino youth, feel the Church is not addressing the challenges in their communities involving racism, prejudice, mental health or immigration laws. He noted the reports showed the Church has a serious lack of resources committed to youth and young-adult ministry for these communities. He said promising efforts to promote vocations to priesthood, marriage and the call to holiness for young adults in their 20s need more sustained resources, as well.

At the same time, Cardinal DiNardo explained, the reports showed that the Church in the U.S. has been able to develop talented youth and young-adult ministers and shows “best practices” are emerging.

“The reports reveal some untapped opportunities that exist to connect young people to a relationship with Christ, the Church and her mission and to their vocational pathway,” he said.

Cardinal DiNardo said the report is being sent to the Vatican Synod Office overseeing the synod preparations.

The Vatican requested that each bishops’ conference send one to three delegates aged 16-29 to meet with Pope Francis in March as part of the preparatory process. Cardinal DiNardo said the bishops’ Committee on Laity, Marriage and Family Life, headed by Archbishop Charles Chaput of Philadelphia, and the Committee on Clergy, Consecrated Life and Vocations, headed by Cardinal Joseph Tobin of Newark, New Jersey, will together select three youth representatives.

“More work needs to be done to build up our relationship with youth and young adults, and we can be hopeful this synod process will contribute to those efforts and bear much fruit,” he said.

Catholic News Agency reported Nov. 15 that four bishops will participate at the synod itself as representatives of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) — Cardinal DiNardo, Archbishop Chaput, and Archbishop José Gomez and Auxiliary Bishop Robert Barron, both of Los Angeles.

Honest Snapshots

Paul Jarzembowski, assistant director of youth and young-adult ministries for the USCCB’s Secretariat of Laity, Marriage, Family Life and Youth, told the Register that what happens with millennials will have an intergenerational ripple effect on the Church.

Unlike previous generations, which had a pattern of many young people leaving the Church, but then returning as they became stable, formed families and sought sacraments for them, now losing that demographic often means losing their descendants, as well.

Jonathan Lewis, the Archdiocese of Washington’s director of young-adult ministry and evangelization, told the Register the data from the diocesan consultation process helps give an “honest snapshot” of the Church’s relationship with young people.

Overall, many Catholic young adults neither feel invested in their parish nor feel their parish is invested in them. But he said the surveys are primarily reflecting the situation of the Catholic young adults in regular contact with the archdiocese. Most respondents attend Mass every week; a third went to Mass more than once a week.

“We’re not talking about the ‘drop-in Catholic.’ We’re talking about those who have given their lives to Jesus and made an intentional commitment to stand against the culture and to grow in their relationship with God in the life of the Church.”

While the Church has many new initiatives to engage youth and young adults, Lewis said small-group experiences (similar to what RCIA provides catechumens) could provide a way for young adults to have an experience of parish friendships, having people pray with them and for them, and have regular spiritual direction and accountability as they discern their path to holiness.

He said a renewed form of the sodalities, confraternities and associations that once defined parish life before the Second Vatican Council might provide the “authenticity” in relationships that young adults seek.

In the Diocese of Bridgeport, Connecticut, Bishop Frank Caggiano told the Register that the results from their consultative process showed that youth across all demographics are experiencing a phenomenon happening with young people all over the globe. Bishop Caggiano sees the landscape of spiritual pain and isolation in a variety of forms, including the opioid epidemic and the rise of suicide, particularly among youth.

But many young people continue to disaffiliate from the Church, rather than turn to it. Bishop Caggiano said many young people see a division between religion and science or reason: If science and reason can answer the question, they figure they do not need religion; if not, then they turn to religion.

“Religion almost becomes the god of the gaps,” explained Bishop Caggiano, not the Catholic vision of faith and science in harmony together.

But another factor is young adults’ overall lack of confidence in existing institutions.

A survey of millennials, conducted in 2016 by Ernst & Young and the Economic Innovation Group, found only 25% had “a great deal” of confidence in organized religion. The only two institutions with more than 50% confidence for millennials were the military and colleges and universities.

Accompaniment and Engagement

Auxiliary Bishop David O’Connell of Los Angeles has worked in parishes, both as a priest and bishop. He told the Register he believes young people will respond if the Church will accompany and engage them as Pope Francis requested. The bishop added that young people need “good experiences” of faith, prayer and worship from the Church.

He said his experience also resonates with what the Vatican’s preparatory document stated: Young people are open to lectiodivina (prayerful contemplation of Scripture) in community and learning how to pray with others.

“It does talk about how young people are so disconnected and isolated, but it does mention that if they’re engaged, they respond with great generosity, and I have found that also to be true.”

Your comment brings encouragement on this Sunday morning. I received it as a blessing.

It inspires me to continue to hope for every good thing and to remember that “God’s mercies are not exhausted; they are renewed every morning; So great is His faithfulness.”

Thank you and God bless you.

Posted by Ken on Saturday, Nov, 18, 2017 3:20 PM (EST):

@ Latecomer, I was raised by a very faithful Baptist mother who was a great example to me and my 4 siblings so I kind of know what you are talking about. She knew her bible very well and faithfully did her daily devotions, was a Sunday school teacher etc. Here I am today a Catholic of 36 years and I wouldn’t have it any other way because what we have is the fullness of faith and the beautiful sacraments. I have a friend who was a protestant and not very friendly to the Catholic faith but one day he saw a bumper sticker that had a Catholic radio station on it. Well he tuned in to that station out of curiosity and today he and his whole family are Catholics. I guess my point is don’t write off your interaction with these folks as having not been a gift giver, you never know what seeds you may have planted and from reading your post it sounds like they were very blessed to get to know you. God bless..

Posted by Latecomer on Saturday, Nov, 18, 2017 8:27 AM (EST):

A few thoughts in connection with my first comment here:

The culture within which a Christian believer worships has, as we know, a powerful influence. This influence does not shape our belief but it does influence the way in which we live out our faith.

To provide just one example: I was given a book written by the founder of Bible Study Fellowship, “To God Be The Glory”. The author’s testimony to her all-encompassing faith in Jesus and in the accuracy of Scripture was inspiring. It was beautiful. Yet, to my regret and sorrow, it lacked understanding of our present-day but timeless encounters with Jesus, present by the power of the Holy Spirit and only by His power, in the sacraments of His Church.

The richness and the beauty of the Scriptural record of Jesus’ life and saving death, loved, cherished, and trusted by the women with whom I studied (and by the leader whose faith was enriched by serious study at the highest level) yielded great spiritual blessings.

I understood myself a guest of these devout and serious believers. Their faith filled a lacuna in my understanding. They taught me about bearing witness, openly and clearly, to Christ in everything I think, say, and do. I am still learning that lesson.

But that which I had to offer - the sacramental treasures of Christ’s Church - was unwelcome; not wanted; rejected. So I brought nothing to them and left that place as a grateful “gift-receiver” but not as a “gift-giver”.

Posted by Latecomer on Friday, Nov, 17, 2017 12:02 PM (EST):

I love the Catholic Faith. I respect and love the sacraments of the Church. And yet until I moved to Texas from the Northeast, I had never experienced what I will term “loving fellowship” of Christians for one another. I had never been in company of people from all walks of life who knew, revered, loved, and attempted to live according to Gospel teachings.

Because a caring neighbor who is a faithful Christian believer invited me to attend Bible Study Fellowship, I was introduced to friendship in Christ. Each Wednesday in company of three hundred other Christian women, I prayed, sang, listened, and studied that year’s course: Isaiah and the Minor Prophets. It would be impossible for me to exaggerate the goodness of that experience.

I was not at all young at the time. But, as I look back upon my life, I do believe that I would have - and that many, many young people today - would welcome a program such as “BSF” as it is fondly called. That study, together with faithful reception of the sacraments of the Church, caused me to grow in closeness to Jesus and his Church.

Posted by Theresa H on Friday, Nov, 17, 2017 11:25 AM (EST):

I live in FLORIDA, where a large segment of the population (including Catholics) is elderly. But, in our Church we have a Spanish segment of both older AND young adults with young children AND they have a Mass every Sunday in Spanish. The children are taken to a nearby classroom where they have their Catechism every week while the priest is delivering the Homily after the Gospel to the adults…. It works very well.

Posted by john spizziri on Friday, Nov, 17, 2017 9:36 AM (EST):

bravo ranger! what is needed is heroism and vision, and standards. Not pats on the hand and saying i feel your pain.Young people respond to challenges and dares- and we in the church exhibit neither.

Posted by Ranger01 on Thursday, Nov, 16, 2017 4:34 PM (EST):

The RCC in the US is bleeding young people because the young don’t give a damn about touchy-feely religion.
Touchy-feely they can get anywhere from any secular organization.
Which seminaries are full, dear author? The ones which offer the Cross and the beautiful Catholic traditions.
This isn’t about social work.

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